An outdoor lighting system, such as a roadway/outdoor lighting system, includes one or more lighting fixtures, each fixture typically providing illumination to surroundings within close proximity thereof. Such lighting fixtures can be found along the streets and street corners, and at roadway intersections.
The lighting fixtures also provide visibility during nighttime hours for security and safety purposes. These fixtures are generally positioned along streets and highways to enable pedestrian traffic and vehicle traffic to safely navigate the roadway after hours and in low lit areas.
The lighting fixtures are typically mounted on street poles as shown in FIG. 1. FIG. 1 depicts a conventional roadway outdoor lighting system 50, including a pole 10, a mast arm 20 connected to the pole 10 at a proximal end. Also, included is a lighting fixture 30 physically coupled to a distal and of the mast arm 20. The roadway outdoor lighting system 50 is typically disposed in the ground at a bottom of the pole 10.
The mast arm 20 includes electrical wiring for connecting and energizing the lighting fixture via a utility grid. The lighting fixture 30 typically includes a lighting device 32 and a connector 40 (e.g., a NEMA® socket) at a top surface thereof for connecting to a control system including housing having a wireless node or photocell 45 for controlling the lighting fixture 30.
The poles of the roadway/street lighting systems are increasingly being used to perform other functions such as remote monitoring, utility energy management and global positioning system (GPS) mapping, in addition to providing lighting. Therefore, the wireless node needs to be colored per necessary requirements and capable of allowing communication at various frequencies.
The housing of the wireless node is typically formed with two or more plastic components (e.g., a window and a cover as shown in FIG. 1). The components can be attached together via mechanical fixation or manufacturing methods such as ultrasonic welding or snaps. The node allows light spectrum display and sensing through the window.
There are several challenges associated with the mechanical design and the manufacturing thereof since unfavorable environmental factors (e.g., temperature conditions, or wind or other environmental conditions) can diminish performance. Therefore, additional components (e.g., gaskets and other hardware) and manufacturing processes may be necessary that incur additional costs for attempting to mitigate the impact of an unfavorable environment, and provide a reliable outdoor wireless control system.